Hit record! Cell phone video of your 'stuff' can save you time and money
HOUSTON (KTRK) -- If you ever fall victim to a flood or a fire, and have to replace all of your belongings, you'll need to come up with a detailed inventory of what you had in-order to process a claim. It's a prospect that can be daunting to even think about. Well, Consumer Reports says there is a fairly simple way to handle it.
Financial experts at Consumer Reports say one of the best ways to document your belongings for insurance purposes is with a video. It doesn't have to be complicated, you can even use the camera on your phone.
Try to capture everything you own by opening closets, cabinets and drawers and by describing what you see as you record.
Be sure to include what's in your bookcase, art that's hanging on the walls, and major appliances. Always capture brand names and serial numbers so your insurer can replace what you had with exact or similar items. Focus on what's valuable. You can skip the cleaning supplies in a closet, for instance. An insurance adjuster is likely to create a bulk estimate for those things anyway.
Then, put the video onto a thumb drive and upload it to the cloud or stash it in a safe place so it's there when you need it.
